Jagular

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While you're perfectly correct about the unsuitability of MRI for airport security, I don't believe heavy water is a common MRI contrast agent. My wife (a radiologist) usually mentions gadolinium being used. BTW, PET scans (Positron Emission Tomography) use sugar...

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Oh there's plenty of people I can pay to do it in town. But they work normal office hours, and so do I. And town is between where I live and where I work - it's not just a "nip out for 5 minutes at lunchtime" job. Yes, I could do it when, once every few weeks, I go into town for something the supermarkets or the open-late corner shops don't sell. But that's not suitable not just for "urgent" but for anything other than "totally laid back". I don't have to put any significant cash value on my time...

Unless you live right next door to a garage, that cannot possibly be true. Chances are it'll take as long just to drive to the garage as to change the oil, and once you add on the time spent driving back again, and the time spent hanging around like a spare part while they change the oil, it's taken far longer than it would to do it yourself. Indeed, especially that last one, because they won't be able to do the actual operation any quicker than you can, and they won't start doing it the instant you get out of...

The HP Color LaserJet Pro 3600 was apparently about half a grand when it was available new, about a ton on ebay now. It doesn't do A3, and at a guess an A3-capable equivalent would have been about three times as much, if not more - given that we're talking a few years ago now - and certainly not something I'd have been willing to take a gamble on it genuinely being capable of full photographic quality printing. First A3 colour inkjet I had was an HP forgetthemodel for 20 quid off ebay. Built like a tank, obviously designed for...

Only, of course, I'd have to make a trip to buy the oil - which is some sort of weird synthetic stuff - I'd have to look up what it is, and the filter. And another trip to dispose of them properly afterwards. And change into dirty clothes and back, and scrub my hands for ages afterwards. So even if the rest wasn't true the calculations are nowhere near as favourable as you make them. Actually I do live very close to the garage. Close enough that if I ask them nicely they'll pick up the car when I'm away...

You're making lots of assumptions there. When I get my oil changed I take along marking, sit at a table, and get work done while someone else is changing the oil and washing my car. (And doing an inspection as well.) Given that I don't have to spend time cleaning up, and that I'd have to spend the time making anyway, I'm further ahead having someone else do it. (Time driving to the garage? Right by a grocers where I can buy food, so no extra time used there.)...